Friday, August 26, 2016

The challenges of this writing week have been the death of my desktop (ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!) and the return of wrist problems AND a surprise visit from my pop on a day set aside for nothing but research and writing.

Which wouldn't be so bad if I wasn't already behind.

But I am. Mostly due to circumstances outside my control, but that's life. Or the writing life.

Writing a first draft is just the weirdest thing. You start with basically nothing. Even when it's a series book and you have the advantage of knowing the characters and their dynamic...there's this feeling of trying to make a snowman out of sand. I hate this stage. It is all blood, sweat and tears. And Sam-E and motrin and sleeping with wrist braces and typing with copper thread gloves and begging my computer not to leave me...

I'll do anything you ask, just don't die, my little graphics card...

Anyway, here's a messy, clunky wee snippet from the first draft of FAIR CHANCE, third and final book in the ALL'S FAIR trilogy, which is the current project (though not due out until next year)

CHAPTER ONE

“I knew you’d come.”

Andrew Corian, dubbed “The Sculptor” by the national
press, was smiling that same old smile. Supremely confident and a little
scornful. For a moment it was as almost as if he was seated at his desk in his
old office at PSU and not in this dingy
interview room at The Federal Detention Center in Sea-Tac.

“Sure you did,” Elliot said. He had been second-guessing
the decision to meet with Corian from the minute he’d acceded to SAC
Montgomery’s request, and Corian’s supercilious attitude just confirmed his
doubts. They were not going to get anything useful out of The Sculptor.

Corian’s big hands, wrists handcuffed, rested on the
resin table top. He spread his fingers, palms up in a have a seat
gesture as Elliot took the chair across the table.

“How could you
resist? A chance to play hero one last time. A chance to convince yourself you
got the better of me.”

“You’ve been hitting the psych shelves in the prison
library pretty hard,” Elliot commented, folding his arms on the table top. He
glanced casually around the room. He’d been in plenty of these interview rooms back
when he’d been with the FBI. Neutral colors. Durable furniture. Mesh over the
windows. Generic right down to the two-way mirror behind which stood Detective Pine
of Tacoma Homicide and FBI Special Agent Kelli Yamiguchi.

Just in case they missed anything, the cameras overhead
were recording the interview.

Corian’s eyes, a weird shade of hazel that looked almost
yellow in the institutional light, narrowed at Elliot’s jibe, but his broad smile
never faltered. He seemed to be a in great mood for a guy looking at a multiple
life sentences.

“But enough about me,” Elliot said. “Let’s talk about
your favorite subject. You. Or more exactly, why you wanted to see me.”

Corian sat back in his chair. He looked a bit like a
cartoonist’s idea of the devil. Gleaming bald head and immaculately trimmed
Vandyke. He was a big man and prison had made him bigger. Leaner. Harder. He
looked like he ate steroids for every meal and spent all his free time
body-building. Maybe the body-building wasn’t far from the truth. There wasn’t
a hell of a lot to do while sitting around waiting for trial. Not when you’d
been caught red-handed, as it were, in a series of brutal slayings and
mutilations spanning more than fifteen years.

He said, “I didn’t want to see you, Mills. I gave
you permission to visit. That’s all.”

“Two letters in two months? We’re practically pen pals.
Come off it, Corian. You want me to sit here and listen to you explain in
detail how brilliant you were. How brilliant you still are compared to the rest
of us.”

Corian’s smile widened. “That wouldn’t be the only reason.”

“It’ll be the main reason. You’re sure as hell not
interested in bringing closure to the families of the victims.”

“You’ve never understood me, Mills.”

“You’re right about that.

“But you’re afraid of me.”

Elliot sighed. “No, Andrew. I’m not.”

They had never been on first name terms. Corian replied,
“You should be, Elliot.”

“This is bullshit.” Elliot made sure his tone revealed
nothing but boredom. “If the idea was to get me here so you could practice your
bogeyman routine, you’re wasting both our time.” He pushed his chair back as
though to rise.

Corian sat back and expelled an exasperated sigh. “Goddamn,
Mills. Can’t you at least buy me a drink before you screw me over?”

“Look, you wrote me. I’m not looking to continue
our relationship--if you want to call it that. I don’t need closure. I got my closure
when they slammed those cell doors on you.”

That wasn’t completely true. Like everyone else involved
in the case, Elliot wasn’t going to truly breathe a sigh of relief until Corian
was tried and convicted. He wanted the reassurance of knowing Corian was locked
up in a maximum facility until the end of time. The numerous court date postponements
were wearing on everyone’s nerves.

Corian had the gall to look wounded. It was only partly
an act. Being a psychopath, his own pain and his own frustrations were very
real to him. It was the suffering of other people he was indifferent to.

“I’d appreciate a little courtesy. A few minutes of intelligent
conversation. Or as close as you can manage.”

Elliot eyed him without emotion. “All right. But we
don’t have all day. If you’ve got something to say, you’d better say it.”

Corian leaned back in his chair, smiling. “How’s the
fall session shaping up? Have they hired someone to replace me yet?”

“Oh, no one could
replace you,” Elliot said sarcastically.

“True.” Corian grinned. “How’s Rollie? I read his book. When
you think about it, it’s pretty ironic. The only child of a celebrity sixties
radical joining the FBI.”

“Yep. Ironic. Are
we done with the chitchat?”

Corian’s smile faded. “All right. Ask your questions.”

“As of this date, sixteen bodies have been removed from
the cellar of your property in Black Diamond, bringing the number of victims to
twenty-three. Is that it? Is that an accurate headcount? Or are there more?”

“Headcount.” Corian’s smile was pure Mephistophelian. Partly
he was acting. Partly he was simply…evil.

Friday, August 19, 2016

It has been a really, really long time since I've done one of these cover art contests. 2014 was the last one.

﻿

Cover Design by James, GoOnWrite.com

And that would largely be because I bought so many covers when we did that last one. But anyway, I've got some new projects coming up, and while most of them do have the cover art already designed, a number of them are without art.

So I'm going to be put up a couple of cover art challenges in the posts that follow/precede this one.

Here's what you need to know.

The deadline is September 22.

It's more challenging this time because in most cases you're being asked to match the style and feel of existing covers.

The technical stuff. The covers must be vertical (rectangle-shaped) and must be a minimum width of 1,400 pixels. Recommended size is approximately 1,600 pixels wide by 2,400 pixels tall. JPEG (JPEG / JPG) or TIFF (TIF / TIFF) ONLY.

I will pay $75.00 a piece for the winning cover (not including the price of any photos that must be purchased) and the artist of course gets a cover credit inside the book.

The photos can be submitted to the contest with the watermark.

****Because I have an existing account at Shutterstock, I would prefer that you choose from their library, but I'm not going to make that a hard and fast rule if someone comes up with a really amazing image for a winning cover. ***

Your work will be posted on this blog site and then readers and other interested parties will vote for their choice for the final cover over the next week (I need this all finished up by the end of September) HOWEVER THE FINAL VOTE IS MINE. And I can be picky and eccentric as regular viewers know.

If you have any other questions, go ahead and in the comment section below.

The cover for the first book in the series (published by Samhain but soon to be back in my hot little hands) was done by the wildly talented Kanaxa. I liked it a lot at the time, but I'm neutral as to whether to keep that concept or change it out entirely.

So this is another one that could potentially turn into a two-book deal?

I wish I could be a little more definite about what I want, but I honestly don't know. What I can tell you is these books are fast-paced and funny. This is light-hearted stuff not serious gory vampire stuff.

Anyway, here's the blurb:

Fraser Fortune and the production crew for The Mysterious reality show are headed to Gnarlbone, Massachuttes, the vampire capitol of North America--much to the dismay of newest team member Dr. Drew Lawson.Drew is putting everything on the line to see where the instant and powerful connection between him and Fraser might lead. He wasn't expecting destination Transylvania, USA.Sometimes romance bites.

And again, if you'd like to read the excerpt from the original book, Mummy Dearest, it's right here. Oh, and there's a little bit of a trailer on this page at the very bottom.

This is the sequel to Snowball in Hell. It's set in 1944 Los Angeles -- historical -- which is always SUCH a PIA. And to make it all the more complicated, I'd like this one to look similar to the Carina Press cover for Snowball.

That's not mandatory, but it's preferable that series books look like they're related.

Here's the blurb:

An anonymous midnight phone call involves reporter Nathan Doyle in a case of kidnapping and murder, placing his fragile relationship with LAPD Police Lieutenant Matthew Spain at risk--as well as Doyle's life.

If you're not familiar with Snowball in Hell (and why should you be?) you can read an excerpt right heeyah.

Among things that happen in this book...there's a body that disappears out of a hotel room and an explosion. I know. Not as helpful as I imagine.

Technical:•JPG, PNG, or TIF file format only.•No smaller than 2400 x 2400 pixels.•No smaller than 72 dpi resolution.•24-bit (True Color) minimum.•RGB color (not CYMK).•Images must be a true square, not a rectangular image with borders.•File name should be condensed book title. Alphanumeric characters only.Image Content:•Must contain both the name of the title and author(s).

You don't have to match any previous artwork or covers. Which maybe makes it easier. Or more fun?

It appears that I don't have an official blurb for this story! Whaaa--?! But you can read an excerpt here. And there is a little book trailer here.

Here's the blurb: The last thing Jason West, ambitious FBI special agent with the Art Crimes Team wants -- or needs -- is his uncertain and unacknowledged romantic relationship with legendary Behavioral Analysis Unit Chief Sam Kennedy.

And it seems like Sam is unsold on the idea as well.

But personal feelings must be put aside when Sam requests Jason's help in order to catch a deranged killer targeting wealthy, upscale art collectors.

I'm not sure if it makes it harder or easier that I'm not crazy about the cover for book one. (The model appears to have vanished from Shutterstock, which makes it more challenging too--but in any case he was a bit young for Sam Kennedy and way too blond for Jason West.)

So I guess this could go either way. It's possible that a completely new concept would make me rethink Mermaid's cover--you might find yourself with a commission for two book covers.

Or not.

I honestly don't know because I'm pretty divided on this one.

It might be safer to stick with just picking up style elements from Mermaid and applying them to Monet?

Questions can be posted below -- though clearly I will not have much in the way of answers. ;-)

Arriving home early after spending Christmas in jolly old England, sometime amateur sleuth Adrien English discovers alarming developments at Cloak and Dagger Books--and an old acquaintance seeking help in finding his missing boyfriend.

Fortunately, Adrien just happens to know a really good private eye...

Although the existing series covers (by the wonderful Kanaxa) are getting a bit long in the tooth, I still really like them a lot and am not ready to change them out. So the challenge here is to create something that works seamlessly with the existing series covers. Which you can check out on my cover gallery right here.

Although a couple of the covers featured landscape and not humans, books with humans on the cover sell better, so my advice would be opt for a human male on the cover.

The second thing to remember is this is a holiday story. So a few holiday elements might not come amiss. Or maybe they would. I'm not the artist here. You are.

Friday, August 12, 2016

It's been a very long time since I did one of these Author! Author! posts, but I've got some friends, Romans, country--well, people dear to me with books coming out in the near future and Discoverability being the issue that it is, I thought maybe I'd start throwing in the occasional interview with a vampeer.

One of the things I like about S.C.'s work is the sheer versatility. She tackles the tough issues and then she can turn around and write something nutty and humorous like Assassins are People too. That's not all that common.

****S.C. is offering a signed print copy of Starting New (and she might even throw in another book, who knows?) to one lucky commenter below.

And without further adieu, meet S.C. Wynne.

JL - Who are you again? No, but seriously, do you agonize
over writing those author bio thingies? Share your favorite author bio. (By
which I mean bio for YOU)

SC - I hate writing
the bio thingies. I have no idea what to say about myself. If I had to choose
one I guess it would be this one:

S.C. Wynne never knows what to say about
herself, so writing an About Me section is challenging.She loves red wine and is obsessed with
coffee. She hasn’t won any awards for writing although she did win one for
reading once. She’s not a world traveler…yet.The books she writes are light and romantic with a healthy dollop of
humor, and just a dash of angst.

S.C. is not curing cancer, but does think
reading stories that make us happy can’t help but improve our lives. She falls
in love with every character she writes and hopes her readers will too.

JL - Are you a
fulltime writer?

SC - Well, I write
full-time, as in every day, all day. BUT, I don’t make a living doing it yet. I
own a coffeehouse with my husband. I’d love to make a living writing full-time
but building a career takes time. Sometimes I want to stomp my food and scream
: “I want a golden goose of my very own, daddy!” But then I remember I’m not
five and I continue to hone my craft.

JL - Have you ever broken a bone? Have you ever broken
anyone else's bones? Have you ever

wanted to? Do you want to break my bones
now? Huh? Do ya?

SC - would never hurt
you, Josh. Not in public. Where there would be witnesses. I broke my little toe
once. That is so boring though. I should lie. Yes, I work for the mob and I
beat the crap out of a tailor this morning. He didn’t pay up and the boss
doesn’t take kindly to that. No, I’ve never broken anyone’s bones. But if
anyone tried to hurt my kids I would rip their head off. I guess that would
still not qualify as breaking bones though.

JL - Readers may not know that your day job is owning a
coffeehouse. Share what you consider the best recipe you ever created. Seven
and Seven does not count!

SC - Awww, man. Okay, I think my favorite
drink is the Black Cherry Espresso Bean. I won’t give you the exact recipe
because I have no doubt Starbucks is watching everything I do, but suffice to
say it has chocolate, espresso, ice cream and other really, really good stuff
in it.

JL - What was the most interesting or surprising thing you
learned while researching STARTING NEW?

SC - That the New
Testament doesn’t ever truly address or condemn homosexuality.I’d always assumed it directly denounced
homosexuality, but it doesn’t. There are possibly three passages in the New
Testament that might refer to homosexuality. But when you start looking at the
details and the translations of the original Greek it is anything but a clear
condemnation of homosexuality. You have to look at the usage and meaning of the
words during the time the Bible was written.

This site has some
great detailed info on the subject if anyone is interested. https://www.westarinstitute.org/resources/the-fourth-r/what-the-new-testament-says-about-homosexuality/

JL - How did you and the Mister meet?

SC - We were both Navy
Seals. One day I was underwater surveying a sunken Russian submarine when my
leg was trapped by a steel beam. Thank God, Mister was there. I’m kidding. That
would be so cool though. I think I just got a book idea. No we met through an
online Christian dating service. I know! It’s crazy. AND, while I’m happily married for over 20
years I would not recommend it. There were a bunch of weirdoes and fake people
in that group. I’m amazed and happy that I got lucky with my husband. Not THAT
kind of got lucky!!! Get your minds out of the gutter people!! :D

JL - What do you love most about writing? What do you like
least?

SC -
What I love most: The stories. The pure freedom to write whatever the hell I
want. I love the M/M genre to read and
write. What I hate most are reviews. I have a thicker skin now than when I
first began this journey. I dismiss one and two star reviews filled with rude
gifs as sad, bitter people. I’m not a fan of spewing, whether it be all over me
or out of me. If you can’t be constructive, I have no interest in your opinion.

JL - Fashion magazines always ask this question: What is the
one cosmetic or grooming tool you cannot live without? And do you have any idea
why all these fashion models are always pretending the one tool they can't live
without is their EYEBROW GROOMER?

SC - Eyebrows are
life!!! Without them we have no expressions!!! I’m looking at that question you
sent me right now with my brows up to my hair line. But how would anyone know
that if my eyebrows weren’t properly groomed???

JL - OH, THEY KNOW,
SC. THEY KNOW!!!! Next question. Readers of this blog love funny food allergy
stories. Can you share any amusing near death experiences brought on by a food
allergy?

SC - I’m sorry… the readers of this blog like
what now?? I don’t have a story like that. I apologize for not almost dying
from my food for the amusement of your crazy readers!!

JL - How very
disappointing. We probably lost half our readers with that!!!!There’s probably no use continuing, but okay.
Whatever. What do you think is the most important thing to remember when
creating fully realized main characters?

SC - Main characters
don’t have to be perfect. In fact, they shouldn’t be. Real people are flawed.
Even good people have issues. And bad people have good qualities too. Basically
what I’m saying is people are complex. Show that in your stories.

JL - Getting back to your food allergies...okay, never mind.
Do you eat breakfast? Did you know it's the most important meal of the day?

SC - I always have breakfast. It’s called
coffee. Oddly enough that is also my lunch. Now you have me thinking I need
coffee. I’ll be right back.

JL - Come back!!! What are you working on now? What's out
next?

SC - Cowboys are
involved in this one. I’m tweaking it and expanding it based off of interest
from a publishing house I’m hoping to get into. We shall see. But either way
this story will be published because sexy cowboys need a voice. Who will stand
up for them if not me?

JL - Do you believe
in extra-terrestrial life?

SC - Have you not been
watching the presidential race? Of course I do. See how diplomatic I am that
I’m not actually pin pointing either candidate?

JL - STARTING NEW
deals sensitively with a number of complex themes including the potential (as
perceived by some) conflict between Christianity and sexuality. Do you consider
yourself a spiritual person?

SC - I’m spiritual but
not religious. I don’t like organized religion and actually find that other
people tend to get in the way of my relationship with God. I find the recent
climate of one party trying to own God annoying and false. If there is a God
and God is love, than he loves all of us.

JL - Tell us something surprising. Anything. Go on. Surprise
us!

SC - I’ve developed an
unhealthy obsession with watching Wincest videos on Youtube! Only fans of
Supernatural will know what the hell I’m talking about!

***

So there you have it!

And here's a little info about Starting New:

Life hasn’t been
good to Francis Murphy. He’s survived twenty-one years of homelessness by
hooking and taking handouts where he can find them. When the local shelter is
vandalized, he’s forced to seek food at the Grace and Light Church, where he
runs into the pastor’s son, Randy.

Randy Wright
believes the best in others. He's immediately drawn to Francis, even though
Francis is hardened and wary. When Francis is attacked by one of his johns,
Randy and his family take him in and offer him temporary work. Randy always
thought he was straight, but something about Francis has him yearning for more
than just friendship, and realizing he might be bisexual.

Francis is attracted
to Randy too, and Randy and his parents say they’ve always believed in gay
rights. But talk is cheap. What are the odds that these Christian parents will
remain open-minded when it's their own son in a relationship with another man?

Remember to comment below for a chance at winning a signed copy of Starting Over!

Friday, August 5, 2016

I mentioned in an earlier post that I'm working on this crazy extra project called The Curse of the Blue Scarab. I call it my "monster mash-up," because that's what it is. It's a literary mash-up of a 1912 horror novel called The Mummy by Riccardo Stephens.

A mash-up novel (also called "mashup" or "mashed-up novel"), is a work of fiction which combines a pre-existing literature text, often a classic work of fiction, with another genre, such as horror genre into a single narrative. Marjorie Kehe of the Christian Science Monitor renders this admixture of classic text as "somewhere between 60 and 85 percent original text, with new plot twists added by contemporary co-authors". These "twists" often include horror fiction elements like vampires, werewolves or zombies.

That's pretty much it in a nut-shell. However a key point is that these works are almost always works that have fallen into public domain. Meaning, they are no longer under copyright.

Now given that in my case the book is already about a mummy, you might wonder what it is I'm bringing to the mix besides a male/male romance? Well...time will tell.

How on earth does it work? Sometimes better than others.

But, for example, here's the original opening bit of The Mummy.

I was sitting at breakfast one February morning, about nine o’clock, two years ago, with Mudge, my servant, ex-sergeant of Marines, at my back telling some yarn about what he said he had done at Ladysmith.

Though 1 live in the West End, it is only in a little flat over a grocer’s shop, in a small side-street off Piccadilly, where my patients are principally the servants (and principally the men- servants—butlers, coachmen and such-like) from the big houses and clubs.

A couple of news-boys began yelling something through the morning fog, about exclusive information and special edition of the Daily Tale. I knew nothing would satisfy Mudge till he got a copy. So I sent him out.

Presently the outer door was pushed open, and a man's voice asked loudly whether the doctor was in.

“Second door right-hand side of lobby,” 1 shouted, and the man was in before I could swallow another mouthful.

And here is a rough idea of the opening of The Curse of the Blue Scarab.

I remember the fog
was particularly thick that February morning.

Pressing its
formless face to the steamy window panes, grey and dreary as a specter, it crept
down the chimney, dripping and hissing onto the smoking logs.

Drip. Hiss.
Drip. Hiss.

An otherwise
unremarkable start to the day that was to change my life forever.

Bird, my servant, an
ex-sergeant of Marines, was spinning some lengthy and involved yarn about his exploits
at Ladysmith while I attempted to read my magazine and finish my breakfast
before the business of the day began.

“Those were weary
hours. Lying on that hill while the bullets hailed down on us. I can still hear
‘em cutting through the air and clacking on the rocks. You couldn’t hear
yourself think...”

“One can only
imagine,” I murmured.

My name is Armiston.
I’m a physician living and working in the West End. This
sounds grander than the reality which is a little flat over a grocer’s shop in
a small side-street off Piccadilly. My patients are principally the servants
(and principally the men-servants—butlers, coachmen and such) from the big
houses and clubs.

“Nine hours we
clung to that pile of stones. Cartridges dwindling and men dying. I can tell
you hope was fading…”

“I feel as though
I’m there beside you.” I turned the page of the magazine, studying the dubious
claims in the advertisement for Madam Harper’s hair tonic.

In the street
below a couple of news-boys began yelling about exciting informationexclusive to the special edition of the Daily Tale. I knew nothing would satisfy
Bird till he got a copy. So I sent him out.

Drip. Hiss.
Drip. Hiss.

Presently the
outer door was flung open, and a man’s voice demanded whether the doctor was
in.

“Second door
right-hand side of lobby,” I shouted, and the man was in before I could swallow
another mouthful.

It's the same and yet... It is transformed into something new. And hopefully amusing.

This is my relaxation in between working on FAIR CHANCE, the final book in the All's Fair trilogy. That one's turning out to be a rather tense book, so mummies and supernatural goings-on are kind of a relief!

About Me

Josh Lanyon is the author of over sixty titles of classic Male/Male fiction featuring twisty mystery, kickass adventure and unapologetic man-on-man romance.
Her work has been translated into eleven languages. The FBI thriller Fair Game was the first male/male title to be published by Harlequin Mondadori, the largest romance publisher in Italy. Stranger on the Shore (Harper Collins Italia) was the first M/M title to be published in print. In 2016 Fatal Shadows placed #5 in Japan's annual Boy Love novel list (the first and only title by a foreign author to place on the list). The Adrien English Series was awarded All Time Favorite Male Male Couple in the 2nd Annual contest held by the 20,000+ Goodreads M/M Group. Josh is an Eppie Award winner, a four-time Lambda Literary Award finalist (twice for Gay Mystery), and the first ever recipient of the Goodreads Favorite M/M Author Lifetime Achievement award.